REUTERS
Shipments of Russian onions are expected not to be very large as the quality is not very good.
Economist from the Investment Center of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations Andriy Yarmak says Ukraine has started importing onions from Russia and the Netherlands in April and from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan late in March due to domestic price hikes.
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"Despite the fact that prices of onions in Russia are also growing dynamically, the prices in Ukraine are now almost twice as high, which makes onion exports from Russia to Ukraine feasible. This is especially true against the background of continued supplies of Russian potatoes onto the Ukrainian market, as the same traders could also offer onions," he said, as reported by the East Fruit analytical platform's press service on April 6.
However, the expert suggests that supplies of onions from Russia will not be very large over quality issues. According to Yarmak, the quality of onions from the Netherlands or Poland is better, while their prices are the same or even lower.
"In addition, suppliers from Uzbekistan offer onions, which is 66.7% cheaper, while exporters of vegetables from Kazakhstan can supply onions whose price is slightly higher. And even more expensive logistics makes such supplies attractive for the Ukrainian market," he added.
As UNIAN reported earlier, the prices of vegetables from Ukraine's borsch kit last week (from March 27 to April 2) grew by 2% from the previous week, according to the National Bank of Ukraine.
Executive Director of the Ukrainian Horticultural Association Semen Kramarenko earlier said that the spread of the coronavirus and subsequent quarantine in Ukraine were behind a rush on ginger, lemons, and garlic, while the latter almost doubled in price in Ukrainian stores.